dingus

[ ding-guhs ]

noun

, Informal.

, plural ding·us·es.

1. a gadget, device, or object whose name is unknown or forgotten:

   We're missing the little dingus that makes the cable work.

2. a foolish, stupid, or inept person; doofus:

   I'm a complete dingus when it comes to math.

Word History and Origins

Origin of dingus¹

First recorded in 1870–75; from Dutch dinges or its source, German Dinges, probably originally genitive, with partitive value, of Ding thing ¹

Example Sentences

Alisha Dingus, the development director at the DC Abortion Fund, told Salon the effects over the last two years will take decades to overcome.

From Salon

However, as Dingus said, advocates say it will likely take time for that to be felt throughout abortion fund networks.

From Salon

“A lot of money was spent on political campaigns and ballot initiatives and now we are in a reality where for the next four years, all we can hope is for things not to get worse,” Dingus said.

From Salon

“Even if we weren't dealing with a hostile administration, someone couldn't snap their fingers and restore all the access we have lost over the past two years,” Dingus said.

From Salon

Today, Dingus is still struggling to come to terms with the sudden abandonment of donors with whom she thought she was politically aligned, over a disagreement on an issue that has nothing to do with the service the organization provides: funding abortions in the D.C. area.

From Slate

More About Dingus

What does dingus mean?

Dingus is a very informal word for an object whose name you don’t know, have forgotten, or can’t recall at the moment.

It’s often used to refer to gadgets or parts of things that might not even have a commonly known name, as in Before we attach the bracket, we have to insert this dingus here. 

There are several other similarly informal words that are used in the same way , including thingy, thingamajig, thingamabob, doohickey, doodad, whachamacallit, and whatsit.

Example: My kids got me one of those dinguses that track your steps. What’s it called? A stepometer?

Where does dingus come from?

The first records of the word dingus come from the 1870s. It comes from the Dutch word dinges, from the German Ding, meaning “thing.” So a dingus is really a thingus.

Today, the word is especially used to refer to small, physical objects, but its ambiguous nature means it can be used for all kinds of things (which is really the point of a word like dingus). Sometimes, it’s used just to be a bit funny, even if you actually know the name of the object you’re referring to.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to dingus?

• dinguses (plural)

What are some synonyms for dingus?

• thingy
• thingamajig
• thingamabob
• what-do-you-call-it
• whaddyacallit
• whatsit
• whatsis
• doohickey
• doodad
• doodah

What are some words that share a root or word element with dingus? 

• thing

What are some words that often get used in discussing dingus?

 

• gadget
• gizmo
• device
• contraption
• object
• item
• forget
• name

How is dingus used in real life?

Dingus is very informal. It’s especially used in speech as a way for the speaker to refer to something whose name they don’t know or can’t remember at that moment.

Complain about overpriced plastic dingus and a stranger will model a free 3D printable version http://t.co/JEjYERxYKV pic.twitter.com/9q5CU8Zr57

— Cory Doctorow #BLM (@doctorow) March 1, 2015

Bolt and fastener chart: what's that dingus called? http://bit.ly/hqQ7QU

— Boing Boing (@BoingBoing) January 30, 2011

Poop-Deck is scrubbed and clean. Now, to get a plastic dingus from Ace Hardware.

— Diana Brooks (@Geekytaitai) August 20, 2010

 

Try using dingus!

Is dingus used correctly in the following sentence?

This darn dingus doesn’t even work anymore—can you pick up another one at the store?